News/Blogs  

  CHANGE AND CHILL: DOES COOLING OFF PERIOD DETER OR JUST DELAY DIVORCE?  

No matter how eagerly anticipated a change in the law may be, it can take some time after it comes into force to discern whether it has had the desired effect – or any effect at all. That is why the latest divorce figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) could be said […]

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  Hall Brown Completes Awards Hat-Trick As Regional Employer Of The Year  

Hall Brown Family Law has continued its remarkable run of success by claiming a prestigious regional business award. The firm triumphed in the Employer of the Year category at the North West Business of the Year Awards. It is Hall Brown’s third major trophy of the year and comes just days after the firm retained […]

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  Splits And Seasons: The First Year Of ‘No-Fault’ Divorce  

Marriages, it could be said, are measured in years spent together, filled with families and shared experiences – some good, some not so. As a family lawyer, however, I would venture that divorce, on the other hand, can be traced in seasons. That is because it is possible to discern fairly distinct patterns in when […]

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  Second Time Around: Lockdown Marriage And The Over-Fifties  

A recent high-profile court case involving Ed Sheeran has reminded us that many popular songs stretching back decades have employed similar musical devices to – quite literally – strike a chord with listeners. However, the same is true of the themes explored by those responsible for penning the lyrics. Certain topics have resonated to such […]

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  Census And Sensibility  

Since it was first published (anonymously) just over 200 years ago, Jane Austen’s ‘Sense And Sensibility’ has struck a chord with successive generations of readers. However, despite the book remaining enormously popular, its view of the world – and marriage, in particular – has seemed ever more dated. As the novel illustrated, marriage was the […]

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  Civil Partnerships: Practicality Or ‘Princess For A Day’?  

Flicking through the Christmas television schedules, it’s impossible to ignore how many of the movies listed are laced with more than a smattering of romance. However, as much as we might be seduced by Hollywood’s often rose-tinted version of what it means to be in a couple, reality – especially at the moment – is […]

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  ‘No-Fault’ Divorce: Historic But Only A Halfway Mark  

Today is an historic day for family law in England and Wales. It marks the day on which the provisions of the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 (https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2020/11/contents/enacted) come into force. Most notable of them all is the removal of the need for spouses to apportion blame for the breakdown of their marriages. The […]

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  Flexibility Is The Key: International Women’s Day And The Workplace  

This year marks the centenary of a milestone in the history of the legal profession. In 1922, Carrie Morrison, Mary Pickup, Mary Sykes and Maud Crofts became the first women to qualify as solicitors. That they were only able to do so after the passing of a landmark piece of legislation – the Sex Disqualification […]

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  Covid And The Case For ‘No-Fault’ Divorce  

Although it might seem tempting at times, it can be perilous for any one person to make generalisations based on their own experience. Even campaigns on issues which appear to have broad support can be shaped by the opinions of those leading the push to achieve a specific objective. We don’t always have the benefit […]

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  Domestic Conflict and Covid  

Even now, just days into the second national lockdown declared by Prime Minister Boris Johnson to control the spread of coronavirus, we are still learning about the impact of the first set of restrictions imposed in March. Much attention has, of course, been focused on those who unfortunately contracted Covid-19 as well as the considerable […]

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